LUV TULUM REVIEW

During our trip to Tulum, we stayed at a little boutique hotel called Luv Tulum. It was a beachfront, no frills spot that had some of the cheapest rooms available for the holiday weekend.

When I say no frills, I mean NO FRILLS. It was an eco friendly hotel and they do as much as possible to minimize their carbon footprint (as do many places in Tulum), so there was no AC, minimal lighting, and only one outlet! The wifi didn’t always work, which wasn’t really an issue for us but solo travelers may want to check in with friends/family more often and that could be a point of concern. The continental breakfast left much to be desired, but we did enjoy the huevos rancheros, which were extra. I’ve stayed in some TERRIBLE hotels during my college/grad school budget travel days, so this was nothing new to me and totally okay. Cleanliness is always my number one concern and the place was nearly spotless.

Our room was very beachy rustic, which I did like. Almost everything, if not everything seemed to be made from natural materials and often repurposed materials. The rooms were very thoughtfully designed, and all I really needed was a beach view, which I got. Having no AC was difficult because it was SO DARN HOT night and day, but we slept with the doors open which provided a great breeze (our room was maybe 100ft from the ocean) and I always love hearing the crashing waves at night.

The hotel beach had little beds for us to lay out on - though we opted for chairs under the umbrella - and the beach was meticulously maintained. I think it may be the area or perhaps the time of year, or both, but a lot of seaweed washes up on the shore and the hotel made sure to remove it a few times a day. The beach of the property next door had sea turtle nests, and I imagine it would be absolutely magical to see the babies hatch and make it to the sea.

The location was nice with many nearby restaurants and hotels including La Zebra (yummy breakfast and salsa dancing in the evening!), Hartwood (famous Tulum restaurant run by a New Yorker), and lots of little shops. The hotel offered a happy hour from 4pm-6pm with two for one drinks, but they weren’t strong and we ended up having our tour guide stop at the store so we could get some tequila!

All in all the hotel was average, but a good value. We weren’t particularly impressed with the service while there, but they were very helpful in suggesting excursions as well as transportation options from Cancun to Tulum (about a 2 hour ride). It was clean, and we only saw a few tiny bugs which was impressive considering we left the doors open pretty much the whole time and it was essentially a beach log cabin. I could’ve stayed a week there if there were AC but we were MELTING at times and sweating in places I didn’t even know had glands.